- Thread starter jase158
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Welcome to the forum. Although you can post in any forum, the USA forum is here in case of local regs or laws
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jase158
I was working with a chap for a few weeks before i got NVQ and I was getting £100 a day for labouring, the other guys had a few years experience behind them but no formal qualifications and they were earning £200 a day.
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tamz
Jase your perception of how things work are a bit off.
Most guys on here are 1 man bands or maybe up to 5 guys.
A 1 man band will hopefully fill his week but most likely not. The bigger ones who employ people will still struggle to fill the week to keep everyone busy unless they have contract work which even that can drop like a stone with little to no notice.
For the 1 man band, if things start getting too busy, he may just work 7 days a week or pass a bit work to someone he trusts. The bigger ones will offer overtime to the lads for a short time or get an agency in (if they are brave) but if it is continual then start someone. Sometimes it is better to knock the extra work back.
At one time i had 9 men with me and made less money than i do now. Things are not always as they seem.
Your best bet would be agency work or looking for a job with a big company.
Most guys on here are 1 man bands or maybe up to 5 guys.
A 1 man band will hopefully fill his week but most likely not. The bigger ones who employ people will still struggle to fill the week to keep everyone busy unless they have contract work which even that can drop like a stone with little to no notice.
For the 1 man band, if things start getting too busy, he may just work 7 days a week or pass a bit work to someone he trusts. The bigger ones will offer overtime to the lads for a short time or get an agency in (if they are brave) but if it is continual then start someone. Sometimes it is better to knock the extra work back.
At one time i had 9 men with me and made less money than i do now. Things are not always as they seem.
Your best bet would be agency work or looking for a job with a big company.
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tamz
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tamz
Maybe in the boom times but those have long gone.
I often wonder where this idea of £200 a day comes from?
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tamz
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jase158
Just to clarify I am in Buckinghamshire, things are more expensive here for some reason (maybe because the PM lives here and quite a few famous people) prices are very similar to london prices.
Go 15 miles west and you pay 5p less on your fuel.
Go 15 miles west and you pay 5p less on your fuel.
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jase158
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tamz
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REDSAW
congrat, to jase for this weeks hottest thread.lol
just a word here, my nephews working down in london at the moment with a mate of his doing ventilation. he is getting a £100 a day as he has never done it before only the last 2 weeks on this job.
he is a hairdresser!!!!!!!!, but it is his mate?.
just a word here, my nephews working down in london at the moment with a mate of his doing ventilation. he is getting a £100 a day as he has never done it before only the last 2 weeks on this job.
he is a hairdresser!!!!!!!!, but it is his mate?.
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tamz
The value of someone's work is extremely relative. If some guy trusts you, likes you, appreciates how you deal with customers, gets on with you at a personal level and thinks you work diligently and conscientously he may prefer you over somone far more experienced and skilled and pay accordingly (I've had the honour of such myself.) If he's busy and making good money - or happy to break even while he instead concentrates on building business in a certain area - he may pay over the odds too. But it's a lot of if's.
And so all we can really say is if we think it's a long-shot or not according to our experience of current times. Most people seem to think it's a big ask, some seem to disagree. Nothing wrong with going in high on a business deal. Problems is most business deals don't take place on a public forum surrounded by uninvolved third parties with personal interests and experience in the field. Was kind of asking for a lot noise.
And so all we can really say is if we think it's a long-shot or not according to our experience of current times. Most people seem to think it's a big ask, some seem to disagree. Nothing wrong with going in high on a business deal. Problems is most business deals don't take place on a public forum surrounded by uninvolved third parties with personal interests and experience in the field. Was kind of asking for a lot noise.
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sparra1100
theres no way on the planet i would pay anyone more that £300 a week regardless of who they are ,as ive had times were ive been lucky to get £700 a month even now am not getting much more than that, safe gas install has said he,ll help you so good luck to you but still think your livin in dreamland jase mate
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dontknowitall
I'm not a full time, work any hours type of plumber but it is my full time job, if that makes sense.
This year started well but the summer was not good.
Just done a calculation and in this financial year I've earned the grand sum of £183.16 per ...
...
...
...
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week
(That makes it about £36 a day or £4.88 an hour).
How I'd love to be on £75 a day, let alone more than this. I'm not complaining though, it's just the way things are at present.
This year started well but the summer was not good.
Just done a calculation and in this financial year I've earned the grand sum of £183.16 per ...
...
...
...
...
week
(That makes it about £36 a day or £4.88 an hour).
How I'd love to be on £75 a day, let alone more than this. I'm not complaining though, it's just the way things are at present.
Yeah but £36 a day for how many hours work? I guess an average of 1-2. So pro-rata you're onto a cushy number - with plenty of time left to go fishing, write the all american novel or post on a plumbing forum.
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fuzzy
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dontknowitall
Fair point!
344.6 direct working hours
At least 400 hours for travel, chatting to customers, "could you just jobs", etc
And, in case you're wondering
Charge to customer per hour: £31.51
Out of this I receive £26.11 per hour gross (labour plus profit on stock sold) (£31.51 minus travel time costs)
Taken down to £16.66 per hour after some costs e.g. motor and travel, advertising, sundries, etc, etc
This will come down further due to remaining costs not yet taken into account. For example, depreciation, office use, insurance, clothing, etc as they're calculated at the end of the year.
This takes the £16.66 down to say to around £10.80 per hour.
£10.80 x 7.5 = £81 per day
= £405 per week = £19,440 (48 weeks)
£19.5k is the maximum because we all have days where we're ill, family commitment, customer not in or cancelling at the last minute, delivery late, etc, etc.
I've not typed this to prove a point - just I've never worked out these figures before despite taking time to record the necessary information!
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Barry98
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davebigpipes
Point your missing is that any one who is busy enough to employ some one full time like you want would already have employed some one for less money as their work built up. If you think its that easy to provide someone with enough work aswell as your self full time then why don't you go self employed and with the 200 per day you think you can get employ someone your self to do the admin that you don't want to do?
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jase158
Can i just point out a lil fact that I have noticed,
Below is a similar threads section, which has 4 helping hand threads,
1 has 4 replies and the other 3 have 0 replies,
The fact of the matter is that if I had said I will work for free, then you would of thought, oh not another one!!!
If I had asked for £50 a day I would of got a few good luck messages.
But because I asked for £100 a day a realistic amount that I need to survive on, suddenly everyone is outraged, "this person is trying to actually be sensible and ask for a sensible amount, how outrageous"
How many people who offer their services for free actually keep the job for longer then a few weeks.
Anybody who is older then 17/18 has got bills, they have food to buy and rent to pay.
For anybody living at home with parents that are not paying bills then fair play, working for free or for £40 a week is fair play and if you want to take advantage of this then fair play to you.
But this is not physically possible for me, I need Around £80-£100 a day to pay my bills and feed my family.
If you do not have a job or wish to pay this then fair play, thank you for looking. However I still hold great belief that there are people out there who are willing to pay this much.
Only time will tell.
Below is a similar threads section, which has 4 helping hand threads,
1 has 4 replies and the other 3 have 0 replies,
The fact of the matter is that if I had said I will work for free, then you would of thought, oh not another one!!!
If I had asked for £50 a day I would of got a few good luck messages.
But because I asked for £100 a day a realistic amount that I need to survive on, suddenly everyone is outraged, "this person is trying to actually be sensible and ask for a sensible amount, how outrageous"
How many people who offer their services for free actually keep the job for longer then a few weeks.
Anybody who is older then 17/18 has got bills, they have food to buy and rent to pay.
For anybody living at home with parents that are not paying bills then fair play, working for free or for £40 a week is fair play and if you want to take advantage of this then fair play to you.
But this is not physically possible for me, I need Around £80-£100 a day to pay my bills and feed my family.
If you do not have a job or wish to pay this then fair play, thank you for looking. However I still hold great belief that there are people out there who are willing to pay this much.
Only time will tell.
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jase158
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Hybrid
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jase158
I do get the point, every body on here thinks that a Wet plumber is only worth £40 a day, thats £200 a week, I could earn more then that doing 40 hours at mcdonalds or at a warehouse, so no I don't believe it.
100M + wet plumbers £40 a day
100K + boiler bashers £100 a day
10K maybe, GOOD breakdown engineers £150 a day
supply and demand!
your bascially the equivelent to a 3rd or 4th year apprentice, you can do the wet stuff but not the advanced stuff, so your only going to get as much as what they get imho
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tamz
This isn't Jase's fault. Genuinely it isn't, and as a father to a young family myself, I feel totally sorry for him.
He can't survive on £40 a day. I've had people work for me for free, and they're all either very young and still living at home or have the money to be able to not earn for a while.
This is the media, and the colleges telling lies.
Jase, I don't have any work for you....but wish you the best. My advice is to try and find your own work.
He can't survive on £40 a day. I've had people work for me for free, and they're all either very young and still living at home or have the money to be able to not earn for a while.
This is the media, and the colleges telling lies.
Jase, I don't have any work for you....but wish you the best. My advice is to try and find your own work.
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tamz
Maybe better registering with some of these
[DLMURL="http://www.agencycentral.co.uk/agencysearch/bypostcode.htm?IndustryFilter=construction&LocationID=London&x=106&y=21&ASB=1&MatchType=lookupbyname&MatchID="]Nearest Construction agencies to London[/DLMURL]
Agency work may not be great but it can be steady. No one will expect too much of you and generally it is do this do that stuff. It can be a good way to get experience of things you would never come across and learn.
[DLMURL="http://www.agencycentral.co.uk/agencysearch/bypostcode.htm?IndustryFilter=construction&LocationID=London&x=106&y=21&ASB=1&MatchType=lookupbyname&MatchID="]Nearest Construction agencies to London[/DLMURL]
Agency work may not be great but it can be steady. No one will expect too much of you and generally it is do this do that stuff. It can be a good way to get experience of things you would never come across and learn.
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jase158
Supply 100,110,000 Plumbers
Demand 62,218,000 Population of uk
So thats 1.5 plumbers for each person in the uk
No wonder we are all struggling.
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jase158
I agree but would a level 3/4 Apprentice have full driving license, own van, own insurance and own tools?
What I am saying is if you add up costs, like time spent training up, diesel, tools, extra materials fixing their mistakes, employers liability, would you be paying £80- £100 in total per day?
or would you be paying more like £50-£60 per day?
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tamz
Jase if you register with the agencies, no matter what it is they ask, tell them you can do it or have done it. Normally the work would be short term cover and there will be other guys on the site who will keep you right. If you are half switched on you will learn quick.
what would be cheaper, supplying them with the above or paying someone who already has the above double the daily rate
agreed good advice from tamz, agency work is easy work, and its only short term.
im not entirely sure about apprenticeships jase but i believe you get some funding up here if your with SNIPEF, i dont know about the going rate down south is for plumbers but people up here are on £100-£120 a day, thats SE guys even less when your on the books.
im not entirely sure about apprenticeships jase but i believe you get some funding up here if your with SNIPEF, i dont know about the going rate down south is for plumbers but people up here are on £100-£120 a day, thats SE guys even less when your on the books.
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REDSAW
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RCJ
Jase why don't you do what I do, get a full time job (I work nights) then in the day make top up cash, until youve got loads of experience to tackle the trades well! Eventually moving on to being self employed all the time?
At least you know you have the money coming in at this tricky time?
Hope this helps
At least you know you have the money coming in at this tricky time?
Hope this helps
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sparra1100
ye but jase your just not getting it mate no one is going to pay you £500 a week plus tax and insurance the employers liablilty etc on top mate when your just a plumber or plumbers mate and not even gas safe regardless of what you need to pay your bills i only get £80 a day wen i help a bloke out and am gas safe the lot so £100 just aint happening
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jase158
Can I just ask, where is most people from, the ones who say £100 is not realistic?
I notice that most are from near scotland, Would be interesting to see as not many replies from people in London or within a 30 mile radius.
I notice that most are from near scotland, Would be interesting to see as not many replies from people in London or within a 30 mile radius.
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kirkgas
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dontknowitall
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Barry98
i think you need to consider a carrer change am afraid , how many hours a day are you willing to work just for the sake of asking 9-5
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tamz
£100 (£12.50/hr) is very realistic anywhere for books in. £400 a day (piece work) is realistic books in too if you are good and fast but you won't be home at 5.
Get yourself signed up with every agency you can think of.
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jase158
9-5 = 8 hours,
My post clearly says I will not work 16-18 hours, this is start at 7am and finnish 11pm-1am, this is what RCJ was saying.
No wonder you are only getting £80 a day, if you can't read.
My post clearly says I will not work 16-18 hours, this is start at 7am and finnish 11pm-1am, this is what RCJ was saying.
No wonder you are only getting £80 a day, if you can't read.
your just not listening to anyone jase i get the feeling you are sitting thinking we are all wrong and your right, some attitude
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paul78
i agree with bod mate. Your entering the wrong game because sometimes you just gotta do those long days in the plumbing world. You cant just knock off 5pm if the waters not on in december and they have kids and no heating!
Iv only literally read all these replies tonight and nobodys been ripping into you mate there just being honest to what you asked.
A good tip is dont get the hump either if you dont like what you hear as youll get nowhere in this world being like that in any trade. Think about it.... these posts lasts for ages and if someone reading these needed a help in your area shortly from time to time do you think they would contact you after reading your responses.....
People have to like you to give you money! customers, bosses, subby-mates etc etc
Iv only literally read all these replies tonight and nobodys been ripping into you mate there just being honest to what you asked.
A good tip is dont get the hump either if you dont like what you hear as youll get nowhere in this world being like that in any trade. Think about it.... these posts lasts for ages and if someone reading these needed a help in your area shortly from time to time do you think they would contact you after reading your responses.....
People have to like you to give you money! customers, bosses, subby-mates etc etc
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parsonsplumbing
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Guest123
There are places in SCOTLAND Jase that you can earn in excess of £100 a day, with Aberdeen being one of them. We're not all poor in the North you know, many of us run very successful businesses.
There are a lot of replies from a wide demographic area in England and they all say that £100 is asking too much, but when the economy was in a far better state than now, I would agree with you that you could earn that. Things are very tight just now for everyone.
I can't remember the last time I worked 8 hours a day being self employed, more like 10-12.
There are a lot of replies from a wide demographic area in England and they all say that £100 is asking too much, but when the economy was in a far better state than now, I would agree with you that you could earn that. Things are very tight just now for everyone.
I can't remember the last time I worked 8 hours a day being self employed, more like 10-12.
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tamz
Nothing wrong with working until 11 at night, in fact if you finish before 11 you might catch a late pint on the way home.
It is all down to training :wink:
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RCJ
I work a shift pattern of 5 nights one week, 2 the next, averaging 35hrs a week. And I can easily go 48hours no sleep, done it many times and worked safely too (before anything is said).
Now personally I'm not being horrible, but if I was you and worrying so much about your bills and putting food on the table I would give a monkeys arse about working nights, days and both! As long as I got the funds in. Fair play I'm 21, not got the same experience as most, but the principle of doing any job any hours is in me to make sure I get the dollar in my back pocket.
If what you've stated so many times above is actually as important as you said, you wouldn't care either.
I know this is one of my first posts on here... And those who don't like it well sorry but there's only so much tolerance one person can have.
Now personally I'm not being horrible, but if I was you and worrying so much about your bills and putting food on the table I would give a monkeys arse about working nights, days and both! As long as I got the funds in. Fair play I'm 21, not got the same experience as most, but the principle of doing any job any hours is in me to make sure I get the dollar in my back pocket.
If what you've stated so many times above is actually as important as you said, you wouldn't care either.
I know this is one of my first posts on here... And those who don't like it well sorry but there's only so much tolerance one person can have.
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jase158
I think it is about time this what put to bed as it seems to be going round in circles now.
Thank you to everybody who has posted, firstly I have learnt that it is not what somebody is willing to pay you that counts but what you are worth that is most important,
I have also learnt that there is a very slim chance of a plumber taking me on as 90% of plumbers are either looking for an apprentice or a cheap labourer and is only willing to pay the going rate for an apprentice.
I have also learnt that although the NVQ is a worldwide recognised certificate, it is not worth much to a plumber, experience and Gas safe registration is the most crucial recognition you can get.
Also I have realised that this business is a lot harder to get into then I first believed.
I still believe that £100 is a reasonable amount for a day and will not give up on this, but I am also going to keep my options open in regards to daily rates. (£50 a day is better then being self employed and getting nothing in a week.) If I get offered a job for £50 a day, then it might be worth considering, where as before I would of dismissed it straight away.
Finnaly I would like to say sorry to anybody i may have offended as this was not my intention, I was simply argueing the case, rather then not listening. Thank you to Everybody who has posted.
Thank you to everybody who has posted, firstly I have learnt that it is not what somebody is willing to pay you that counts but what you are worth that is most important,
I have also learnt that there is a very slim chance of a plumber taking me on as 90% of plumbers are either looking for an apprentice or a cheap labourer and is only willing to pay the going rate for an apprentice.
I have also learnt that although the NVQ is a worldwide recognised certificate, it is not worth much to a plumber, experience and Gas safe registration is the most crucial recognition you can get.
Also I have realised that this business is a lot harder to get into then I first believed.
I still believe that £100 is a reasonable amount for a day and will not give up on this, but I am also going to keep my options open in regards to daily rates. (£50 a day is better then being self employed and getting nothing in a week.) If I get offered a job for £50 a day, then it might be worth considering, where as before I would of dismissed it straight away.
Finnaly I would like to say sorry to anybody i may have offended as this was not my intention, I was simply argueing the case, rather then not listening. Thank you to Everybody who has posted.
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Rickster123
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RCJ
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spanners1967
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jase158
48 hours is way too long to be working without sleep, definetly not for me, thank you.
There has to be a balance between working and seeing the family, There is no point working if you don't have time to spend it. life's too short for that.
And to everybody who said I am looking to do 9-5, I am not saying that (although would be nice) I am willing to work, 12-14 hours, but not 16-18 hours.
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dontknowitall
In fairness to you Jase, it seems you've taken our points to heart. In an ideal world, there wouldn't be half the plumbers around that there are at the moment. We're an over crowded country with too many plumbers, builders, solicitors, MPs, accountants and so on - down to immigration.
Hope you find something (in plumbing!) that is agreeable and gives you a decent rate of return.
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RCJ
No in fairness I was telling you to go out and work 48hours, I realise that isn't an easy achievement. I'm in the reserve armed services ( in my spare time hahaha!) so I'm use to doing exercises and no stop activities, spending time away for a while taught me that. But it is about balance, I get every other weekend off, unless a emergency job comes up.
Anyway, what I was trying to say was, even if you get a job in a shop of maybe 30hours a week, it's not your £100 a day, but it's something. Then in your spare time try and earn the rest? My full time job pays £10 an hour. So realistically only £200 of work would need to be earnt (well a bit more if calculating tax blah blah blah).
I genuinely hope you sort it. As they say good things comes to those who wait.
Anyway, what I was trying to say was, even if you get a job in a shop of maybe 30hours a week, it's not your £100 a day, but it's something. Then in your spare time try and earn the rest? My full time job pays £10 an hour. So realistically only £200 of work would need to be earnt (well a bit more if calculating tax blah blah blah).
I genuinely hope you sort it. As they say good things comes to those who wait.
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Pete3690
Id like to be able to get in the plumbing trade as an apprentice let alone as a mate, I would happily work for national minimum wage if it meant getting 1 step up the ladder 🙂
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freddy14
I'm sorry jase but your way off the Mark...I'm 24 have a 3 yr old and a mortgage and an expensive Mrs!!! I learnt the hard way, had to drop out of Uni to get a job to provide for them. at one point I was leaving my day job (9-5) having to eat my dinner on the way to my other job in a bar just to get by and feed my family! big shock from Uni life but needs must!
life a beach sometimes and don't get to see my family some night...don't get to see me boy in the morning because I've gone to work and he's asleep when I'm home...its not what I want but when I do get the chance I cherish them moment with them and hope one day thinks will get better! and the Mrs understand I have to do this!
my point is sought your attitude out because let's face it...its stink! don't intend on causing offence but I have read through this thread and your comments are frustrating, your missing the point of these plumbing willing to give you advise!
I myself work full time like rcj and gain experience on word of mouth jobs on evenings and weekends and have done for the last 18 months, yes very slow going you could say but I'm gaining invaluable knowledge VIA jobs (small & large), this forums and reading countless book to back up my onsite knowledge. And um getting there as the other I was speaking to a random bloke in my local Indian cuisine and was telling me situation and he has offered me Saturday work whenever I want it...turned out he was a plumber! the best Indian I have ever had.....I only bought him one pint too, cheap date 😛
life a beach sometimes and don't get to see my family some night...don't get to see me boy in the morning because I've gone to work and he's asleep when I'm home...its not what I want but when I do get the chance I cherish them moment with them and hope one day thinks will get better! and the Mrs understand I have to do this!
my point is sought your attitude out because let's face it...its stink! don't intend on causing offence but I have read through this thread and your comments are frustrating, your missing the point of these plumbing willing to give you advise!
I myself work full time like rcj and gain experience on word of mouth jobs on evenings and weekends and have done for the last 18 months, yes very slow going you could say but I'm gaining invaluable knowledge VIA jobs (small & large), this forums and reading countless book to back up my onsite knowledge. And um getting there as the other I was speaking to a random bloke in my local Indian cuisine and was telling me situation and he has offered me Saturday work whenever I want it...turned out he was a plumber! the best Indian I have ever had.....I only bought him one pint too, cheap date 😛
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PlumbBobBob
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kay-jay
Tamz i agree 100 a day is achievable but we are discussing a 'mate' here and not a plumber. no-one will pay a ton a day while he gets his speed up.
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